I tried to pin him down on a time and place, but he was very evasive.
•Don't try to pin down the mayor on anything!
•I want to nail her down on a meeting time.
Dictionary of American idioms. 2013.
nail sb down — UK US nail sb down Phrasal Verb with nail({{}}/neɪl/ verb [T] INFORMAL ► to make someone give you exact details or a firm decision about something: nail sb down on sth »We ve been trying to nail them down on the specific points of the agreement… … Financial and business terms
nail — ▪ I. nail nail 1 [neɪl] verb [transitive] informal to catch someone and prove that they are guilty of a crime or of doing something bad: • The government spent vast resources in an unsuccessful effort to nail him on felony charges. nail down… … Financial and business terms
nail — noun 1》 a small metal spike with a broadened flat head, driven into wood to join things together or to serve as a hook. 2》 a horny covering on the upper surface of the tip of the finger and toe in humans and other primates. ↘a hard growth on… … English new terms dictionary
nail — nail1 S3 [neıl] n [: Old English; Origin: nAgl] 1.) a thin pointed piece of metal with a flat top, which you hit into a surface with a hammer, for example to join things together or to hang something on ▪ The key was hanging on a nail by the door … Dictionary of contemporary English
nail — 1 noun (C) 1 a thin pointed piece of metal which you force into a piece of wood with a hammer to fasten the wood to something else 2 the hard smooth layer on the ends of your fingers and toes: Damn! I ve just broken a nail. 3 a nail in sb s/sth s … Longman dictionary of contemporary English
nail — nail1 [ neıl ] noun count ** 1. ) a thin pointed piece of metal that you use to attach one thing to another by hitting it with a hammer 2. ) the smooth hard part that grows over the ends of your fingers and toes: to cut/file your nails I ve told… … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
nail — [[t]ne͟ɪl[/t]] nails, nailing, nailed 1) N COUNT A nail is a thin piece of metal with one pointed end and one flat end. You hit the flat end with a hammer in order to push the nail into something such as a wall. A mirror hung on a nail above the… … English dictionary
nail — nailless, adj. naillike, adj. /nayl/, n. 1. a slender, typically rod shaped rigid piece of metal, usually in any of numerous standard lengths from a fraction of an inch to several inches and having one end pointed and the other enlarged and… … Universalium
nail down — phrasal verb [transitive] Word forms nail down : present tense I/you/we/they nail down he/she/it nails down present participle nailing down past tense nailed down past participle nailed down 1) informal to definitely decide, arrange, or complete… … English dictionary
nail — I UK [neɪl] / US noun [countable] Word forms nail : singular nail plural nails ** 1) a thin pointed piece of metal that you use to fix one thing to another by hitting it with a hammer 2) the smooth hard part that grows over the ends of your… … English dictionary
nail — [[t]neɪl[/t]] n. 1) a slender, rod shaped piece of metal, typically having a pointed tip and a flattened head, made to be hammered into wood or other material as a fastener or support 2) a thin, horny plate, consisting of modified epidermis,… … From formal English to slang
